Divergent, Insurgent, Allegiant…Really?

I read the entire Divergent trilogy and have been sitting on it for months because I really did not want to write this review. I have mixed opinions about every single book, so I knew this would not be easy to write. I have finally decided to dive in and knock them all out in one big review. So, here goes…

In Beatrice Prior’s dystopian Chicago, society is divided into five factions, each dedicated to the cultivation of a particular virtue—Candor (the honest), Abnegation (the selfless), Dauntless (the brave), Amity (the peaceful), and Erudite (the intelligent). On an appointed day of every year, all sixteen-year-olds must select the faction to which they will devote the rest of their lives. For Beatrice, the decision is between staying with her family and being who she really is—she can’t have both. So she makes a choice that surprises everyone, including herself.

During the highly competitive initiation that follows, Beatrice renames herself Tris and struggles to determine who her friends really are—and where, exactly, a romance with a sometimes fascinating, sometimes infuriating boy fits into the life she’s chosen. But Tris also has a secret, one she’s kept hidden from everyone because she’s been warned it can mean death. And as she discovers a growing conflict that threatens to unravel her seemingly perfect society, she also learns that her secret might help her save those she loves . . . or it might destroy her.

My Review

In my opinion this was the best book in the series. It was interesting and I really connected with Tris. She had been raised in Abnegation, but she was kind of a bad-ass, so she switched to Dauntless. She definitely had a lot of learning to do. She was not the strongest or fastest in the newbie Dauntless group, but she fought hard and wouldn’t take no for an answer (often to her own detriment). The relationship between Tris and Four was believable, and I was really pulling for them.

On the flip side, the plot had massive holes in it. There was no information about how this society came about. Plus, there is no way a society would split into five factions to create unity. Ridiculous! Now, I know this is all addressed in the other books, but if you only read this book, you would be left wondering, “What the heck?!” I pressed on hoping I would get some answers.

One choice can transform you—or it can destroy you. But every choice has consequences, and as unrest surges in the factions all around her, Tris Prior must continue trying to save those she loves—and herself—while grappling with haunting questions of grief and forgiveness, identity and loyalty, politics and love.

Tris’s initiation day should have been marked by celebration and victory with her chosen faction; instead, the day ended with unspeakable horrors. War now looms as conflict between the factions and their ideologies grows. And in times of war, sides must be chosen, secrets will emerge, and choices will become even more irrevocable—and even more powerful. Transformed by her own decisions but also by haunting grief and guilt, radical new discoveries, and shifting relationships, Tris must fully embrace her Divergence, even if she does not know what she may lose by doing so.

My Review

Ok, I can sum up this entire book in two words…teenage angst. Oh my word! I about rolled my eyes out of their sockets on this one. I literally wanted to punch Tris in the freaking nose! She was all bad-ass in Divergent and then she went to pieces in Insurgent. I did enjoy Tris and Four’s arguments only because they seemed so realistic. Neither of them could stay focused on what the heck they were arguing about. It would start off with what had actually made them mad and then they were pulling up every stupid thing that had hurt their feelings since the beginning of time. Anyone who’s married will totally relate to these types of arguments. The argument scenes (and there were plenty) made me laugh out loud.

I have to admit there was some decent action in book 2, but Divergent was still better.

I really had hoped I would get more info about how this society came into being in book 2. Finally, at the very end, they dropped a bomb letting me know it would all be revealed in Allegiant. So, I headed off to book 3.

What if your whole world was a lie?
What if a single revelation—like a single choice—changed everything?
What if love and loyalty made you do things you never expected?

My Review

Really?!?!? This was the big reveal I had been waiting for? The reasoning behind the society was such a let down. The book, as a whole, was a let down. It really was one of those instances where I wish I had not wasted my time. That is basically all I have to say about book 3. It was just disappointing. There were a lot of people who ranted about the ending. I actually thought the ending fit the storyline, so that didn’t ruin it for me. I just really wanted there to be a good reason for the creation of this society and there wasn’t.

Wrap-up

So, as you can tell, I didn’t care that much for the series as a whole. When I was reading them and even after just finishing them, I thought they were decent. As I have gotten a few months out, my opinion has gone down hill. I would describe them as mediocre. In addition, this was not a dystopian series. Dystopian lit makes some type of social statement, a warning to today’s society. This series did none of that. I feel they labeled it Dystopian to draw readers, but if you want to be specific, this is not dystopian lit.

As I said before, Divergent was the best of the three in my opinion. I would give it 4 Stars. Insurgent and Allegiant would get 3 Stars. If I could go back in time and start all over, I would watch the movie and skip the books. (By the way, you won’t hear me say that very often.)

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3 thoughts on “Divergent, Insurgent, Allegiant…Really?”

I had very similar thoughts, thinking the society was ridiculous (and then looking for answers in the subsequent books, only to get a very lukewarm reveal). The lovers quarrels in the book are somewhat realistic since they’re young and that’s how young people tend to argue (often losing focus). As for the way the series ends, I think it’s unnecessary and doesn’t have as much build up as I would’ve liked.